Rules of Engagement
by Rebellwithoutacause
Summary: My take on Will's feelings after he spotted Lizzie and Jack's kiss. Oneshot.


**_Yes, just a short little ficlet I decided to do after watching Dead Man's Chest. Enjoy! As always, please review! _**

Inconceivable pain knifed his heart from every angle. It twisted in his guts, making him feel sick. It was like the slime of the Kraken had been forced down his throat. That horrible sensation that now overwhelmed him could not be defined as any one emotion. It was pain, yes, but many more feelings as well, many that were much darker.

What could cause such an ocean of feelings inside him? To make him feel as though the arm of the Kraken had wrapped around his chest and was now slowly squeezing the life from him? What could possibly make William Turner feel this way?

Elizabeth. Elizabeth Swann, his only love. The only woman he'd given his heart to. The only woman he would dare ask to marry him. The only woman who could make him befriend a pirate. Elizabeth had been the best thing to happen to him. Or so Will had thought.

Now he was regretting having fallen so head over heels with her. Now he regretted with a horrible sense of guilt every promise or vow he'd made to her. They were all shattered. All of it gone. Leaving a hollow, empty sensation in his heart. A cavity that was rapidly filling with rage.

But not rage at her. No, not to her. He could never hate her, no matter what she did to him. Though what she had was more than grounds for disgust, which he had in full measure. But not hate. No, he could never hate his Elizabeth. Though, now that he stopped lying to himself, he saw, quite plainly, Elizabeth was his no longer.

No, Elizabeth belonged to the person whom he hated. It was Jack Sparrow. Bloody Jack Sparrow who had stolen Elizabeth from him. Jack Sparrow that had wooed his precious Elizabeth. Jack Sparrow who had betrayed his trust. And bloody Jack Sparrow who had tricked him onto the _Flying Dutchmen_ to face the wrath of the whip, and Jones himself.

It didn't seem real to Will. How could Elizabeth do that to him? She'd made the choice; he'd seen every detail of that horrible moment. Her lips against his, her hands gripping fiercely to his outer jacket, as if she longed to slide it off his shoulders. Every bloody detail was branded into William's eyes, and it burned like hot metal.

As Elizabeth came down into the small boat, William was more than aware of the fact that the captain wasn't with her.

"Where's Jack?" he asked, having to force his throat and tongue to work. His voice was an ice splitting sound; he barely recognized it as his own.

Elizabeth looked him square in the eye, and replied, her tone equally as cold. "He elected to stay behind to give us a chance."

William stared into her eyes, and saw the coldness there. In that spilt second, he knew she'd done something, something to Jack. Something that was wrong. Did he care? Only because Elizabeth seemed to be hurt, after she looked away.

As they floated by the side of the Pearl, they were all thinking of the same thing. _How can we leave Jack? _Though for different reasons of course.

"Go!" Elizabeth shouted fiercely to Gibbs. Her wretched expression made Will's heart sting like a bullet had hit him.

He did not want to accept what was so plain before him. _She loves him, _he thought miserably. A cold, icy feeling invaded his stomach, making him feel sick. His heart ached with pain and misery, and he had no way to soothe himself. No thought he could use to comfort himself. He no longer had Elizabeth's love. That, more than anything else, had been his driving motivation, through all of this.

He looked across to her, trying to see in her eyes. She met his own briefly, before she turned her head away. Will knew if he wanted to make it seem real, he needed to play the part. Make it seem he hadn't seen what his fiancé had done. He looked over to Elizabeth again and slowly, he beckoned her forward to his arms.

She came to him as they continued to paddle away. He shielded her in a protective embrace as the boat cut swiftly through the water. It wasn't long before they saw what they all knew was coming, but still made their hearts quake. The Kraken.

Elizabeth turned her head away, burying her face into William's chest as the Kraken's massive arms slid from the water to creep up the sides of the Pearl. William knew she could not bare to watch. Her wanted lover was on that ship. He wanted to pretend that her distress was due only to the fact Jack was a friend. But he knew better. He could lie to himself no longer. He held Elizabeth close, his heart crying silent tears that he'd lost his love, and someone who might have been his friend.

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Tia's hut was a solemn, quiet place. Tia slowly offered drinks around to the various crew members, but Will carefully observed that few were drinking. He himself wouldn't have minded being drunk at the moment. At least he wouldn't know the pain he still felt.

For the past several minutes, he had been throwing his knife into the wooden table. The thunk it made was rythmetic. Steady. Something Will seemed to know no more. As he threw it again, he had to use a little more strength to dig it from the wood, making a small chip fly.

"Doesn't seem possible, does it?" Gibbs asked softly.

Tia had come to Will now, and he replied to Gibbs as he took one of the mugs of drink. "Doesn't matter does it? The Pearl is gone," he threw his knife again, "Along with her Captain."

He was sorrowful that Jack was dead. Not for his own sake, but for Elizabeth. It clearly hurt her terribly to know that he was gone. And to see her so miserable and wretched looking made him upset.

He wondered if all of this was a dream. All a horrible nightmare and the only way to wake up was to have Elizabeth kiss him with all the passion she could muster. But could he ever touch her lips again? Knowing who'd they'd touched now?

As he pulled the knife from the table again, he set it aside and took a small swig of the drink. It burned harshly as it slid down, but he welcomed the pain. Anything to take his brain off the ache in his heart, if only for a second.

With the pain, he knew this was no dream. And there would be no awakening from this nightmare. But he just had to know one thing. He turned to Elizabeth, who slowly met his gaze.

"If there was anything that could be done to bring him back…" he trailed off, unable to say more. He waited tensely for her reply, but it wasn't Elizabeth that spoke, but Tia.

"Would ja do it? Would ja sail to the end of the ert and beyond to fetch back wicked Jack, and him precious Pearl?" She looked excited, eagerly waiting for the crew's reply.

One by one, the crew answered with 'Ayes' and raised mugs. When only Elizabeth and William hadn't answered, Tia turned to them. Something was in her dark gaze that made Will believe she too knew that something had happened between the maiden and the Pearl's late Captain.

"Yes," Elizabeth answered softly, her eyes giving up nothing. They looked sad to William, but he knew better than to believe that was the only emotion there.

Tia turned to him, the final to speak. "Aye," he whispered, giving a small nod.

Will thought that it would take a massive effort to swallow his pride, but as he spoke, he found the words flowed easily from his mouth. There was a new air about the hut, as Tia's eyes sparkled.

"Alright then, but if you gonna brave the weird and haunted shores, at world's end, then, you will need a captain, who knows those waters." She curtsied for a moment before disappearing into the back room.

William hadn't exactly anticipated on Tia's offer to be real. He glanced over at Elizabeth, feeling a well of sorrow like the tide crash into his heart. If they could bring Jack back, would that mean separating himself from Elizabeth? Would she leave him completely?

Unbidden and unwanted, memories poured over William. Memories of him and Elizabeth, all their fondest times. Walks along the beach of Port Royal, fingertips entwining, and Elizabeth's head against his shoulder as they watched the sun sink with a glorious display of color behind the ocean. How happy he had been then! The feelings still remained as he remembered the sweet kiss that followed the sun's final burst of light.

How could he have let her get away from him? How could he have let all of that love slip right out of his hand?

_I didn't _he thought. _Jack snatched it away!_

As he looked back at Elizabeth, he knew that he would do this for her. If it would take away that horrible look in her eyes that look of wretched despair and hope, he could swallow his pride again and save Jack. It might cost him his happiness, but he could do it. For her. For his Elizabeth. For the woman he loved.

But what would happen when he saw Jack again, presuming that they could save him? Would he say anything of what he had seen? Will's gut burned as he thought of the answer.

No. No he wouldn't. He wouldn't because he was a coward. If he had dared voice that notion to anyone, he would have been bombarded with denials. But William knew better. He couldn't threaten Jack about anything except being a pirate. And even then he let the man off! Will had a soft heart, and now, it had been ripped to pieces.

_No more, _Will promised himself. _Jack has never played by the rules of engagement. I tried to be fair, fair as anyone can be with that pirate. What would be fair would be to have him swinging from the gallows pole. _

He shook the thoughts away. No, he couldn't steal Elizabeth's wanted lover. He couldn't do that to her. Because, though she'd hurt him more than words would ever tell, he did still love her. And if Jack was what it took to bring that happy glow in her eyes again, then Jack was what she would get.

A new light came to William's eyes. Elizabeth noticed it as she looked at him. It was a wild light, dangerous and burning with some emotion that she couldn't name. It disturbed her somewhat, but she was to distraught about Jack to care much.

What she didn't know was Will's thoughts ran very close to the lines of "_And this time, I won't play by the rules of engagement."_


End file.
